Quiznos files for bankruptcy

(AOL) Sub shop Quiznos announced Friday that it was filing for bankruptcy. Choked by more than half a billion dollars of debt, the chain is restructuring, cutting almost $400 million of owed money, and, for the moment … is toast.

Pundits say the downfall of Quiznos can be pinned on a myriad of problems, but one of the main causes seems to be the company’s relationship with its franchisees, who are described as “acrimonious,” “disgruntled,” and “maltreated” by The Denver Post.

In 2009, a class-action lawsuit settlement forced Quiznos to pay $95 million to its independently-owned franchises, that, according to the Post, originally sued because expensive ingredients made it nearly impossible to turn a profit.